DEC approves CWM site-wide/RMU-1 permit renewal

by jmaloni

Thu, Aug 22nd 2013 10:55 am

by Terry Duffy

CWM Chemical Services in Porter
announced Wednesday that the state Department of Environmental Conservation has
approved its application for renewal of its 6 NYCRR Part 373 overall site
wide/RMU-1 permit for its Balmer Road hazardous waste landfill facility.

"The NYSDEC has reviewed all
public and CWM comments, including those made during the legislative public
hearing and have not identified any substantive and significant issues
specifically related to the CWM Permit renewal application," wrote David S.
Denk, DEC regional permit administrator, in a letter to Jill A. Banaszak, CWM
technical manager. "Therefore DEC has determined in accordance with NYS Uniform
Procedures Regulations in 6NYCRR Part 621 that an adjudicatory hearing is not
warranted with respect to this particular application, and has decided to issue
a permit renewal of CWM's Part 373 Hazardous Waste Management Permit.

"The renewed Part 373 Permit which
is being issued to CWM is a revised version of the Draft Part 373 Permit. Such
revisions were made as a result of the comments received by DEC and from the
public and CWM."

Lori Caso, public affairs
spokesperson for Waste Management, parent of CWM, reported no "significant
changes" were made to the permit that would affect company operations. However,
CWM did comply with changes to its financial assurances and to its physical
plant at RMU-1 to conform to DEC wishes.

"While there were no significant
changes made to the permit that would affect operations, it should be noted
that the financial assurance required by CWM was increased from $70 million to
$100 million," Caso said. "The permit renewal also included the installation
and operation of two new groundwater pumping systems and the addition of two
new hazardous waste storage tanks to store the pumped groundwater prior to
on-site treatment. A new access road onto the landfill was also temporarily
approved to accommodate trucks as we begin construction of the final cover."

DEC reported it received 83
comment documents from the public and 145 comments from CWM on the Part 373 Permit
renewal. The agency reviewed all comments and responded with revisions to the
final approved renewal. It did not elaborate.

The approval covers CWM's existing
RMU-1 landfill; it does not include CWM's newest application on file with DEC and
under review for the company's sought-for RMU-2 landfill expansion.

In response to this news, activist and Lewiston resident Amy Witryol wrote, "We are relieved that after 40 years, DEC has
approved the Final Cover and closure of CWM's last hazardous waste
landfill in Lewiston-Porter. CWM's 10-year-old application for a
new landfill enters its final phase this fall, and is unlikely to
overcome U.S. EPA and NY DEC findings that New York does not require
additional hazardous waste disposal capacity. CWM has sharply
curtailed operations and is expected to close within the year."